Why Eat Gluten-Free?
Gluten is a protein naturally found in many grains and most processed food products sold in America contain gluten in one form or another, making the removal of gluten from the American diet a challenge. The primary reason people make the switch to a gluten-free diet is to cope with celiac disease, a condition characterized by the inability to tolerate gluten and the resulting irritation of the small intestine. Symptoms of celiac disease can include gas, cramping, abdominal pain, abnormal weight loss and risk of vitamin and mineral deficiencies resulting from inadequate absorption from a regular diet. People who have been diagnosed with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) have also reported an improvement in their condition after changing to a gluten-free diet. Many nutritionists believe that eliminating gluten from the diet may begin to shed light on how diet-based therapies can help individuals with autism, multiple sclerosis and other autoimmune disorders, and ADD.
